WTM search

[Mark Eddy]

I am trying to search for all instances in which the Hebrew phrase “in the days of me/us/him/her/them/you” occurs. In WTM I typed on the command line:
'~wy@n??pc+S ('~wy@n??pc+S)* b
I have also tried the following, with identical results:
'~wy@n??pc+S ('~wy@n??pc+S)?* b
'~wy@n??pc+Sx ('~wy@n??pc+Sx)* b
I think this should produce a list of all instances in which the noun ~wy in the plural is preceded by the prefix b and followed by a pronominal suffix. But when I do the search, in addition to finding forms with a suffix, the list includes all kinds of constructs with no suffix at all. What am I doing wrong?
Mark Eddy

[Glenn Weaver]

Hi Mark,

The character for the suffix code is causing the problem. In your first search, the * means that any code, including no suffix code, will be found.

The second example essentially does the same thing, since x (a placeholder code) is one of the suffix options.

The third example specifies the placeholder, so it won't help either.

In place of +S*, use +S[123]* This specifies that you want to find either 1, 2, or 3 suffix codes in that position after S. Don't forget to include the *, as this specifies all following codes. Otherwise the search is invalid.

The brackets are often overlooked, but can be very useful.